Hello Sophia and a very warm womb felt welcome to you. I am so pleased to have you here.
This is a virtual space where we can chat about all the Womb things and share where we are in our womb story.
I would love to start by asking where you are in the many cycles we are constantly moving within? (E.g menstrual, life, moon, 24 hour!).
It’s wonderful to be here, thank you for having me! I am currently following my menstrual cycle and I am on day 20 - deep in my inner summer. I tend to have cycles around 33-35 days so inner summer is always later for me. I’ll be glad to be in my inner autumn/luteal phase soon though, it’s the space where I feel most grounded and focused. Ovulation often has me a little overwhelmed and struggling to focus my energy in one specific place.
I know language is powerful and that the words we use to describe female anatomy can be loaded. I would love to ask you how you feel about the word womb?
I use the word womb a lot both in my personal and professional practice but there is a part of me that is conscious that although all women have an energetic womb space, not all women have a physical womb and so for some, the word womb may feel a little difficult to resonate or connect with. At times I find it difficult to word my offerings to make sure as many people as possible feel welcome and included into my spaces but after centuries of shame and concealment from patriarchal structures in relation to the womb and women’s health and rights in general, I feel it is important to name such a powerful centre, be it a physical one or solo an energetic space! It really is SO much more than just a physical part of our anatomy. I AM A WOMAN AND I HAVE A WOMB!
Can I invite you to describe your current relationship with your womb?
Wow! My womb and I have been on a wild journey together. I’m so proud of where I am now as it took me a long, painful while to get there! I now welcome my bleed time and feel especially connected to my womb as I feel without her I wouldn’t have such a grounded foundation upon which to live my life. I try to live in tune with my menstrual cycle as much as possible because through years of cultivating the relationship, I realise just how amazing life can be when I tune in and honour all parts of me.
I am really interested to know if your relationship with your womb has changed? And if so how?
When I was younger, I had no relationship with my womb! I was prescribed hormonal birth control at 14 due to really bad menstrual cramps and subsequently spent almost 10 years on hormonal birth control. I was very disconnected from my menstrual cycle and I really had no idea what cyclical living even meant! My initiation into my first ever bleed (menarche) was a rather shameful experience and as a teenager I saw my menstrual cycle as a hindrance and would often just override the pill so I wouldn’t have to have a period.
It was through attending women’s circles and being introduced to a book called Wild Power (which I highly recommend!) that I began to sink into the magic of menstruation and womb wisdom and with that initiation, I decided to stop with hormonal birth control and embrace my natural cycle.
I was met with years of menstrual pain that seemed worse than when I first began with hormonal contraception and what ensued was a year long path of severe menstrual pain to the point I would vomit, long and irregular cycles, severe hormonal acne, unexplained/recurrent UTI’s and other bacterial infections and just a general disconnect from self which was manifesting in lots of self-sabotage and unhealthy relationships.
Now I can see that my womb was trying to communicate with me in all sorts of ways but in the moment, I felt sad and rageful that I was experiencing extreme physical discomfort that no medical professional could really seem to find answers for.
Fortunately I had the privilege to go to spaces where there were some amazing practitioners sharing such valuable wisdom in the menstrual cycle realm - something no GP was ever able to provide me. I also sought the help of a herbalist, cut out lots of foods for a period of time and invested in traditional talking therapy. Cycle by cycle things really did start to improve both physically and emotionally and here I am now!
Is there anything else you feel called to share about your womb story?
I’d like to share that in my opinion, the relationship I have to my womb is lifelong and the lesson that living cyclically (and life in general) gives is that we always ebb and flow and no two days are ever the same. I do still, on occasion, get painful bleeds, acne breakouts or general life hurdles that leave me a little overwhelmed BUT, by staying in tune with my menstrual cycle and listening to my womb, I am so much more equipped when the hurdles do arise. There’s a beautiful saying - “If you listen to your body when it whispers, you won't have to hear it scream” and that is what I try to be mindful of every single day.
As a menstrual cycle coach sharing womb practices such as womb yoga what are your favourite personal practices?
Journaling! - I journal every single day, normally in the evening as a way to process any thoughts and feelings from the day and of course I take a few minutes to note down my cycle observations too.
Movement is really important for me and I LOVE anything that involves moving the hips. It’s a great way to get the blood flowing to our pelvis and helps to release tension out of our womb space. Seated hip circles are my go to for when I’m feeling a little lower in my energy but when my energy levels are higher I put on a good afrobeat song and shake, wriggle and sway those hips!
Lastly, I love something called the womb-heart river. You can bring in some movement with the hands for more of a moving meditation but I often just keep one hand on my womb/one hand on my heart and on the inhale imagine energy from womb space moving up to my heart and on the exhale imagine energy moving down to my womb. It’s a beautiful practice to centre yourself and connect the powerful energies of heart and womb. Gratitude to Uma Dinsmore-Tuli for creating this beautiful practice.
It would be wonderful if you could share your top three tips for menstruators to reconnect with their womb wisdom?
Track your menstrual cycle - it’s the most accessible and affordable way to re-connect to the power of you and your body. In my experience, it has been just as powerful as talking therapy in getting to know me on a much deeper level.
Embrace your cyclical nature - remember that having a menstrual cycle means your energy levels, emotions and feelings are all different during different phases. You are not crazy or lazy - you are cyclical!
Particularly during menstruation, try to embrace rest as much as you can. I believe that menstruation is the most potent time for us to dream, reflect and connect to our womb spaces and in order to hear our womb wisdom, we have to slow down enough to listen. I always use the 1% rule in my work - how can you do just 1% less than normal? Maybe eventually that 1% can become 5% or even 10%!
Thank you so much for being here in the chat womb with me. ♥️ I really appreciate your time and energy.
Before you go, please let readers know how they can get in touch with you.
It has been so wonderful to share my words with you! Thank you for creating this amazing space where we can come together to talk about all things womb!
I am on Instagram @soulphia__ - that is where I share lots of menstrual and womb related wisdom as well as any of my upcoming offerings. I also write about all things related to my experience as a slightly chaotic, cyclical woman over on Substack!
Warmly
Hannah
CEO @ Womb Wisdom
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